Apple Studios NY Post-Production Joins CWA
13 JUNE 2022 - Post-production for Apple TV+ in New York has gone union. A piece from Deadline says:
A small group of freelance post-production coordinators in New York have voted unanimously to join the Communications Workers of America in [National Labor Relations Board]-supervised elections at eight separate companies, including Apple Studios…
“According to the union,” according to the report:
…it’s the first time that post-production coordinators in New York’s film and TV industry have won formal union representation, and the first time that workers employed by any Apple subsidiary have ever won an NLRB election for union representation.
Other studios in on the action include CBS Studios, Disney Pictures, HBO, Netflix Productions, Showtime, Turner, and Universal Television. Deadline has the union saying:
These victories are representative of the growing wave of labor organizing across the country and further reaffirm CWA’s commitment to support worker organizing in the creative arts and cultural sectors, as well as the tech and game industries.
Apple Dating App Changes Mean Peace with Dutch Regulators (for Now)
13 JUNE 2022 - It looks like Apple and Dutch authorities have finally come to terms. You probably remember the story. Since the tail end of 2021, regulators in the Netherlands have insisted that Apple make it possible for dating apps in the App Store there to employ third-party payment solutions, rather than being bound to Apple’s in-app payment mechanism. Apple submitted a proposal in February that was rejected by the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets. That was not even the middle of back-and-forth-back-and-forth between the two parties, though the whole affair has finally reached its end. Well, reach a stopping point.
A piece from MacRumors lays out the latest concessions made by Apple. Meanwhile, Apple 3.0 shared the news that the changes were up to spec, as far as regulators were concerned. The Apple 3.0 post had the regulators saying:
Apple has changed its unfair conditions, and will now allow different methods of payment in Dutch dating apps. With this concession, Apple will meet the requirements that the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) set under European and Dutch competition rules.
Not that Apple is done fighting. The MacRumors report has Apple saying:
We don't believe some of these changes are in the best interests of our users' privacy or data security. Because Apple is committed to constructive engagement with regulators, we're making the additional changes at the ACM's request. As we've previously said, we disagree with the ACM's original order and are appealing it.
WWDC: Two Features Taken Away
Apple Pulls All Mention of HDR10+ from Software Update Sites
13 JUNE 2022 - Two bits of weirdness after last week’s Worldwide Developer Conference, both of which could be in the “Apple giveth and Apple taketh away” category.
Reports last week indicated that the first beta of tvOS 16 brought support for HDR10+. I don’t know about you, but I don’t know what HDR10+ is. Or I didn’t until I went to Wikipedia, which explains:
HDR10+ is a high dynamic range (HDR) video technology that adds dynamic metadata to HDR10 source files. The dynamic metadata are used to adjust and optimize each frame of the HDR video to the consumer display's capabilities in a way based on the content creator's intents.
According to a piece from iDownloadBlog, the preview pages for macOS 13 Ventura, iOS 16, and iPadOS 16 initially promised HDR10+ support. By the end of the week though, the site says all mentions of the format had been removed from all of the preview pages.
That the format will be supported someday seems a given. How soon is another story. If it was likely in the upcoming updates, iDownloadBlog seems to think that Apple would have kept the feature listed as “coming this Fall” or “Coming in 2023.” The piece points out that there is currently no Apple TV that can output the format. Maybe Apple is not listing it as supported because it doesn’t want to tip its hand on upcoming hardware? Whatever the case, iDownloadBlog sees the format’s inclusion in iOS 17, iPadOS 17, tvOS 17, and macOS 14 as a safe bet.
iPad Not Supported as Home Hub on iPadOS 16
As for the other thing that’s gone missing - you know how you can set up an iPad as a Home hub? Not for much longer, it seems. Another piece from iDownloadBlog says with the arrival of this fall’s updates, only Apple TV or HomePod will be supported as Home hubs. While iPad still shows up as an option in the first beta of iPadOS 16, the piece says “toggling it on does absolutely nothing in terms of setting up your iPad as a home hub.”
As for why the iPad functionality is being removed, iDownloadBlog thinks it may have to do with Matter. The site describes Matter as “a new industry standard created to make smart home devices and platforms even smarter and interoperable.” iDownloadBlog thinks it’s possible that a hub supporting Matter may need an always on (or at least always powered) device. HomePod and Apple TV are always plugged in. iPad is not, quite often. Though it’s only speculation on the site’s part, battery powered versus plugged in is the only reason iDownloadBlog can fathom for pulling Apple’s tablet out of the loop.
Deadline: It Starts on the Page for “Ted Lasso” and “Pachinko”
Still from the Apple TV+ Series “Pachinko”
13 JUNE 2022 - More out there for your script-reading production nerdery. I told you last week of a Deadline feature called “It Starts On the Page.” That highlights scripts of some of the most popular and influential shows in a given year, and serves as a sort of jumping-on point for the never-ending awards season.
Two new scripts have hit the pile that probably couldn’t be more different, except for the one thing they have in common: They’re high profile shows from Apple TV+. Up now for your perusal, the script for episode-one, season-one of “Pachinko,” and “Rainbow,” the fifth episode of season-two of “Ted Lasso.”
Last week, Deadline said the scripts it was posting were all being submitted for Emmy consideration. Seeing at least few more scripts from Apple TV+ seems likely.
Apple Inks First-Look Deal with Entertainment Side of Nike
13 JUNE 2022 - The entertainment side of Nike (who knew?) has inked a first-look deal with Apple Original Films. A report from Deadline says Apple, Nike’s Waffle Iron Entertainment and Makeready “will team up to deliver a slate of films to inspire the next generation of athletes and celebrate the power of sport.”
Because if there’s one thing that’s never celebrated enough, it’s sport!
Part of me feels like Apple TV+ has gone to the sports well a lot in its relatively short existence. In fairness though, they tried celebrating the app development process before Apple TV+. Did not go well. Sports content is pretty safe, plus it’s early days.
Apple TV+ Orders Second Season for “Schmigadoon!”
13 JUNE 2022 - News from Apple TV+ that might strike one as somewhat surprising: The Cupertino-streamer has announced a second season order for the musical comedy “Schmigadoon!” An order for a new season isn’t a complete surprise. The show won awards and was a hit for Apple TV+. But the story was told, and can you do the whole 1950’s musical thing again?
New story, one imagines, and new old genres to tackle. While the press release gives no hint as to the story, it does say that season two of “Schmigadoon!” will find our characters in “Schmicago, the world of ’60s and ’70s musicals.”
Everyone appears to be back, including show leads Cecily Strong and Keegan-Michael Key. Season one is available to stream now on Apple TV+. No word on a premier date for season two.
Evercore: Apple Will Keep Pursuing Fintech But Won’t Be a Bank
10 JUNE 2022 - I’ve gotta confess - Thursday’s piece on Apple Pay Later maybe being the most important announcement at this year’s WWDC keynote had me worried that I was a tiny bit ahead of myself. I found a note from Evercore analyst Amit Daryanani encouraging, even though he doesn’t think Apple will ever do the full-on being a bank thing. Apple 3.0 ran part of a note he wrote to clients on Thursday. Commenting on the news that Apple has launched an LLC to handle nearly all of the Apple Pay Later process, the note says:
This subsidiary will enable Apple to enter the lending market in a low risk way to begin iterating on its own internal system for credit checks and risk management. We expect that Apple will also announce a long-term, interest bearing BNPL (Buy Now Pay Later) service, but we still expect them to partner with Goldman and potentially other firms for the long-term service. The announcement of Apple Financing LLC will doubtless lead to renewed calls that Apple plans to pursue a bank charter, but we continue to view this as an unlikely outcome. Apple undoubtedly has the balance sheet power to pursue a bank charter, but we think they will continue to walk right up to the line without ever actually crossing into the territory that would require a charter.
It’s interesting. His summation says financial technology “remains a key driver of Services growth,” and that he and his “expect continued announcements in the space” throughout the year… yet he doesn’t think the company that likes to control as much of any given process as it can will go all in.
Time will tell. In the meantime, Daryanani has an “Outperform” rating on Apple shares. His price target on the shares is $210.
IDC: Tablet and PC Shipments to Drop Through 2022
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
10 JUNE 2022 - Shipments of tablets and PCs are expected to drop through 2022. That’s the thinking of market tracker IDC, according to a piece from CNET. If you’re wondering why, it’s pretty much the same set of factors driving down sales of smart speakers. Pretty much.
Strategy Analytics said earlier this week that the war in Ukraine, component shortages, and the ongoing pandemic were tanking smart speaker sales. For tablets and PCs, IDC blames inflation, the war in Ukraine, and COVID lockdowns in China. It’s not exactly the same list, though the firm lumps supply constraints in with those supply chain lockdowns. Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for IDC, is quoted in the piece saying:
Supply shortages have plagued the industry for a while, and the recent lockdowns in parts of China continue to exacerbate the issue as factories struggle to receive new components from upstream suppliers while also facing issues downstream when it comes to shipping finished goods…
The firm expects global shipments of tablets to fall a little over 6%. For traditional PCs, IDC expects the fall to be a little over 8%.
Bad as all that sounds, it could be worse. IDC believes PC shipments will “remain above pre-pandemic levels and will experience growth in 2023,” according to CNET. So it actually sounds like four factors in play: Inflation, the war, COVID-exacerbated shortages, and tough compares.
Sometimes it bums me out that I won’t be around 100 years from now to read the history of now.
CWA Joins Fight to Unionize Apple Grand Central
Apple Grand Central - Image via Apple
10 JUNE 2022 - Fruit Stand Workers United (FSWU) has a new helper in the union push. Apple Insider says Communications Workers of America (CWA) has joined workers at Apple Grand Central in NYC to assist in their unionization efforts. Fruit Stand had been working with Workers United, the group assisting various Starbucks stores in their unionization efforts. The piece has Chris Shelton, President of CWA, saying in a statement:
Starbucks workers who have been organizing - and winning - union representation across the country with Workers United's support have inspired retail workers at Apple, Verizon Wireless, and many other companies… We appreciate the confidence that the Fruit Stand Workers United organizing committee has in our plan to build worker power at Apple.
It’s an interesting move. CWA is also assisting Apple Cumberland Mall - the Atlanta store that had been seeking a union vote. Originally meant to go off last week, that vote was postponed, with on future vote yet set.
Back to New York, where Apple Insider has one of the Fruit Stand organizers saying:
Through Workers United, we have learned what we can expect from Littler, and we are prepared… By joining forces with CWA, we intend to participate with countless other stores to achieve workers' rights across Apple Retail in the U.S. and we believe we will succeed.
The “Littler” referred to is Littler Mendelson. That’s the law firm (or union busting law firm, depending who you ask) hired by Starbucks to stop its stores from forming unions.
Judge Questions $27M Lawyer Fees in $100M Small Developer Settlement
10 JUNE 2022 - An interesting twist in a case against Apple. Back in 2019, a group of small developers sued the Cupertino-company over its control over the sale of iOS apps and the 30% commission Apple exacts. Apple settled with the plaintiffs, and established a Small Developer Assistance Fund. That fund would see Apple kick in $100 million dollars for affected developers, minus fees for class attorneys.
And there’s the twist. 9 to 5 Mac says the judge overseeing the case, Judge Yvonne Gonzales Rogers, has a question about the attorney fees - specifically, why are they $27 million? The piece cites a Law360 report that had the judge asking to see the lawyers’ math. The site has the judge telling the law firm of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP:
…to submit a mathematical breakdown of how much each class member would receive if she awarded class counsel $25 million in fees instead of the $27 million they requested from the nonreversionary settlement.
The judge noted that for some developers, who she pointed out “really are the people who are taking the brunt of this,” the difference between $1,000 and $2,000 may be significant.
“That’s why I want to see the numbers,” she said.
Between this and her questioning around the Apple v. Epic trial - it’s hard not to like Judge Yvonne Gonzales Rogers.
simply•mac Unexpectedly Shuts Down Amid Insolvency
10 JUNE 2022 - News that is 100% bummer: The nation’s other chain of Apple stores, simply•mac, closed down yesterday. MacRumors had word of the disappointing news. In a letter to employees sent Thursday, MacRumors says:
…simply•mac CEO Rein Voigt said the company is shutting down its operations and terminating all employees effective immediately in anticipation of filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in the United States, which will result in complete liquidation of the company.
Talk about bad timing. The piece quotes Voigt’s letter, saying:
Since our acquisition of simply•mac from GameStop on September 25, 2019, we have worked hard as a team to grow our company to be North America's preeminent Apple Partner and provide our customers with transformational experiences that drive long-term loyalty… However, we could not have possibly foreseen that on December 12, 2019 in Wuhan, China a world-wide pandemic would start and ultimately cause us to layoff half our workforce and close many of our stores.
Not surprisingly, the chain’s financial performance “never met (…) expectations.” No kidding. They had five-and-a-half-months from the time they bought the chain until the world went into lockdown.
Just a really awful story.
Apple Updates macOS Big Sur with Mail Fix
10 JUNE 2022 - Here’s a surprising sentence: Apple has updated Big Sur. Currently sitting in Monterey on the way to Ventura, a piece from Cult of Mac says 2020’s macOS has been bumped to version 11.6.7 “to fix an email bug that prevents email applications from opening attachments.” Specifically, Apple’s release notes say:
macOS Big Sur 11.6.7 fixes an issue where Mail and apps, such as Microsoft Outlook, cannot open attachments if the app required to open the file is already running.
If you’re still hanging out in Big Sur, you can get the update now by clicking:
Apple menu >
About This Mac >
Software Update.
The Cult says you can also get the latest version in the Mac App Store.
Apple TV+ Extends Free MLB Through July
10 JUNE 2022 - If you’ve enjoyed the free Friday Night Baseball on Apple TV+, good news. iMore says the offering, which had been expected to end in June, has now been extended through July. In a press release, Apple Senior VP of Services Eddy “the Butler” Cue said:
The 2022 season is off to a great start, and we’re proud to bring all baseball fans a new way to watch their favorite teams each week, all without local blackout dates or the need for a cable subscription… “Friday Night Baseball” brings the best of Apple’s signature design and commitment to the highest-quality experience together with the time-honored traditions of MLB, and we’re looking forward to offering fans more great games to watch throughout the summer.
Here is the lineup:
Friday 1 July
Texas Rangers at NY Mets 7 p.m. ET
LA Angels at Houston Astros 8 p.m. ET
Friday 8 July
Pittsburgh Pirates at Milwaukee Brewers 8 p.m. ET
Toronto Blue Jays at Seattle Mariners 10 p.m. ET
Friday 15 July
Pittsburgh Pirates at Colorado Rockies 8:30 p.m. ET
Arizona Diamondbacks at SD Padres 9:30 p.m. ET
Friday 22 July
Chicago Cubs at Philadelphia Phillies 7 p.m. ET
Cleveland Guardians at Chicago White Sox 8 p.m. ET
Friday 29 July
Detroit Tigers at Toronto Blue Jays 7 p.m. ET
Chicago Cubs at SF Giants 10 p.m. ET
Apple Pay Later: WWDC’s Biggest Announcement?
Image via Apple
09 JUNE 2022 - Apple CEO Tim Cook says that Apple’s moves in health will be the company’s greatest contribution. He’s spoken of augmented reality one day rivaling the smartphone. While Apple Pay Later may not reach the lofty heights of those two categories, it feels like the argument could be made that that was the most important announcement at Monday’s WWDC keynote.
Because they’re doing it themselves.
Recapping what it is, a piece from MacRumors says:
With Apple Pay Later, Apple Pay users can choose to make four payments spread over a six week period instead of paying up front. The Apple Pay Later feature includes no interest or fees so long as customers make the four payments within the allowed period.
And there’s no bank backing it up. Rather, the piece says:
Apple has launched a subsidiary, Apple Financing LLC, to handle credit checks and make decisions on loans for the service.
Goldman Sachs, the bank that backs Apple Card, still has a part to play. The piece says the bank “issues the Mastercard payment credential used to complete Apple Pay Later purchases” since Apple Financing can’t because it’s not a full fledged financial institution. Yet. The piece sites a Bloomberg report from last March that had Apple “working on a multiyear plan to bring its financial services in house, cutting out the need for partners like Goldman Sachs.” Now, MacRumors says:
Apple is working on payment processing technology and infrastructure such as lending risk assessment, fraud analysis, credit checks, and dispute handling, plus it is working on tools for calculating interest, rewards, approving transactions, reporting data to credit bureaus, increasing credit limits, and more.
Even if Apple’s goal is to become a full fledged financial institution, it’ll take a while. That said, the CEO stressed at this week’s TIME100 Summit that Apple thinks in terms of years, not quarters.
Apple announced a lot of important stuff during the WWDC keynote. As a steppingstone for its business longterm though, Apple Pay Later may have been the most important.
Strategy Analytics: HomePod mini Was Best Selling Smart Speaker in Q1
09 JUNE 2022 - An interesting statement from The Mac Observer: Based on new numbers from Strategy Analytics, TMO says HomePod mini was the single best-selling smart speaker for the first-quarter of 2022. Worth noting though, that does not mean that Apple was the top seller of smart speakers. Far from it. Running down the top-three smart speaker sellers:
Amazon was first with unit sales of 9.9-million
Google was second with unit sales of 6.1-million
Apple was third with unit sales of 4.5-million
So how was HomePod mini on top? Because it’s the only smart speaker Apple sells. The numbers for Google and Amazon combine all of the different models they sell to Apple’s one and only.
Another way that Apple and HomePod mini stand out is in terms of growth. Doing the top-three again:
Amazon’s smart speaker sales grew 1.5% year-on-year
Google’s grew 6.6%
Apple’s grew a crazy big 29.9%
Everyone else sank, according to Strategy Analytics, as did the segment as a whole. Overall, smart speaker sales were down 4.5%. Why? War! Well that and COVID and supply constraints. According to Strategy Analytics:
Russia's war against Ukraine, ongoing and intensifying shortage of semiconductors and other components became crippling concerns for many vendors especially the smart display-heavy trio of Chinese companies Alibaba, Baidu, and Xiaomi, which also continued to deal with unprecedented resurgences of COVID-19 that shut down daily life for many Chinese.
The firm thinks something of a reset is in order. Jack Narcotta, Principal Industry Analyst, Smart Home, Smart Speakers, and Smart Displays says the firm notes two factors to watch. “First,” he says:
…in the US market, smart speaker and smart display penetration rates are approaching a state of market saturation, and the market is shifting from new customer acquisition to add-on or replacement sales which historically have longer sales cycles. Second, in China, slowing the surge in COVID-19 will take time, and compounded with the ongoing component shortage, economic recovery will be hampered until at least mid-2023.
New HomePod Hiding in iOS 16 Beta?
Daunting as the segment may sound, Apple may have a new HomePod for add-on or replacements sales waiting in the wings. A piece from 9 to 5 Mac says code-monkeys have found references to an unreleased and unannounced HomePod in this week’s iOS 16 beta. According to the piece, the secret-hideout HomePod “is labeled internally as ‘AudioAccessory6,’ while HomePod mini is ‘AudioAccessory5’ and the original HomePod is ‘AudioAccessory1.’”
Worth pointing out, as 9 to 5 Mac does, the dynamic duo of Gurman and Kuo have both talked about new HomePods on the horizon. While Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman has said that Apple is playing with a few possibilities, TF International analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has said that a new HomePod is on the way to consumers, with a release date set for late 2022 or early 2023.
European Union Makes USB-C Standard Charging Port by Late 2024
09 JUNE 2022 - Officially official: After talk that it would happen eventually, a piece from Engadget says the European Union has reached a deal to make USB-C the single charger type for smartphones and most other electronics sold across the region.
Billed as environmentally and user friendly, the piece cites a stat from Bloomberg that says EU citizens dispose of “12,000 tons of chargers each year,” a lot of those having never been used. Nuts to that, says the European Union. In a statement, the European Parliament said:
Under the new rules, consumers will no longer need a different charging device and cable every time they purchase a new device, and can use one single charger for all of their small and medium-sized portable electronic devices…
Engadget says manufacturers have a little over two-years to make the change. By autumn of 2024, the piece says makers of “mobile phones, tablets, e-readers, earbuds, digital cameras, headphones and headsets, handheld videogame consoles and portable speakers” will have to be converted to USB-C. Laptops get an additional year-and-a-half to make the switch.
As the EU Goes, So Goes Who?
Having Brexited, the UK doesn’t have to do what the EU says, and in this case it will not. A piece from 9 to 5 Mac cites a BBC report saying, “the UK government is not ‘currently considering’ following the EU’s demands for a common charging cable.”
So what will Apple do? Previously, the company has resisted connector rules like the one approved by the European Union. In a past statement to the BBC Apple had said:
Strict regulation mandating just one type of connector stifles innovation rather than encouraging it, which in turn will harm consumers in Europe and around the world.
Of course, that’s the kind of thing one says when one is trying to head off a rules change. With the change here, it seems likely that Apple will move more of its products to USB-C, rather than making special kit for the EU. In fact, noted Apple watchers Ming-Chi Kuo and Mark Gurman both said independently in May that they expect iPhone to make the switch to USB-C in the second half of 2023.
For those keeping score at home, that is this site’s first mention of iPhone 15, vague though it may be.
Apple and Authorized Service Providers Can Repair Studio Display In-Store
09 JUNE 2022 - Getting your Apple Studio display fixed just got easier, though I’m not sure how you’d go about breaking it.
To this point, problems with Apple’s display would require replacing the whole blessed thing. Likely not an overnight fix, since supply is still tight on the devices. Now however, a piece from MacRumors says displays can now be repaired rather than just replaced. According to the report:
Apple Stores and Apple Authorized Service Providers are now able to complete same-unit repairs for the Studio Display, instead of having to replace the entire display, according to an internal memo [seen by the site].
Authorized repair people can now “order parts to complete Studio Display repairs in store.” Seriously though, try to be careful with your $1,600 monitor.
Bateman Out of Director’s Chair on Apple TV+ Film “Artemis”
Jason Bateman - Image via IMDB
09 JUNE 2022 - The director of a big film for Apple TV+ has taken the off ramp. Deadline says Jason Bateman has pulled out of the Scarlett Johansson/Chris Evans film Artemis, “due to creative differences.”
Very little is known about the movie, except that it stars Scarlett Johansson and Chris Evans and was supposed to have been directed by Bateman. Well, that and Apple’s said to have ponied up $100 million for it.
Bateman and producers are said to have parted amicably, but parted they have. No word yet on a replacement.
Apple TV+ Outs “Black Bird” Trailer and Release Date
“Black Bird” premieres globally July 8, 2022 on Apple TV+.
09 JUNE 2022 - Apple TV+ has put out a well made trailer for a creepy looking show. The Cupertino-streamer issued a press release Wednesday, announcing a start date for the six-episode limited series “Black Bird.” Quoting the release:
Inspired by actual events, when [a] high school football hero and decorated policeman’s son (…) is sentenced to 10 years in a minimum security prison, he is given the choice of a lifetime — enter a maximum-security prison for the criminally insane and befriend [a] suspected serial killer (…), or stay where he is and serve his full sentence with no possibility of parole.
They want him to do that so he can get a confession from the killer before he can get out on a technicality, it seems. I watched the trailer, and it looks… really scary.
Taron Egerton plays the high school hero gone bad. Paul Walter Hauser plays the suspected serial killer. Other cast members include Sepideh Moafi, Greg Kinnear, and Ray Liotta - in what’s likely to be his last television role. Liotta passed away last month.
The first two episodes of “Black Bird” will hit Apple TV+ on Friday 8 July. Episodes will follow one per week for the next four weeks. You can catch the seriously creep trailer below.
Recapping Apples watchOS 9 Announcement
New Faces for watchOS 9 - Image via Apple
08 JUNE 2022 - Not unlike the focus on the lock screen during Monday’s introduction of iOS 16, the starting point for watchOS 9 is the watch face. Or, faces. Four new ones on the way for the new OS, including:
Lunar - depicting the relationship between the Gregorian calendar and lunar calendar
Playtime - a dynamic, artistic endeavor created in collaboration with artist Joi Fulton
Metropolitan - a classic, classy, type-driven face
Astronomy - a remastered face featuring a new star map and current cloud data
Health and Fitness Improvements
On the health and fitness side, the way workout metrics are displayed has been tweaked, as have the metrics for select activities. Stride Length, Ground Contact Time, and Vertical Oscillation are added options for Running workouts. According to Apple’s press release, runners can also race against old times on established routes, and they can set a distance and time they want to run, with Apple Watch guiding them to the proper pace to complete it.
“Kickboard detection has been added as a new stroke type for Pool Swim workouts,” according to Apple.
While Fitness+ has always displayed workout metrics on the screen, watchOS 9 will also post guidance messages on the screen as well. That sounds like an interesting way to tailor a video workout to the specific needs of a specific individual.
And Fitness+ finally gets AirPlay support, shooting both the video and the on-screen metrics to compatible third-party TVs and devices.
Sleep Insights are going more in depth. With the watchOS 9 update, Apple says:
Users will see sleep stage data on Apple Watch in the Sleep app and can view more detailed information, like time asleep, alongside additional metrics, like heart rate and respiratory rate, in sleep comparison charts in the Health app on iPhone.
While the ability of Apple Watch to alert someone in AFib has been a thing for a while, watchOS 9 will let users access their AFib History, “providing deeper insights into their condition.” They can also export a PDF of that info to share with the medical professionals in their lives. Kind of amazing.
And finally, Apple’s press release says:
The new Medications experience on Apple Watch and iPhone helps users manage and track their medications, vitamins, and supplements, allowing them to create a medications list, set up schedules and reminders, and view information on their medications in the Health app.
And here in the states, the watch will be smart enough to know whether new meds added have potentially critical interactions with meds already in the regimen.
Sayonara, Series 3?
Tons of other updates for the tiniest of Apple’s computers, though not for one of its oldest. For a couple of cycles now, folks have wondered why Apple kept selling Apple Watch Series 3, and when it would stop doing so. Expect that to happen soon. According to Apple’s update announcement:
watchOS 9 will be available this fall as a free software update for Apple Watch Series 4 or later paired with iPhone 8 or later and iPhone SE (second generation) or later, running iOS 16.
In other words, Apple Watch Series 3 will not make it to watchOS 9. Hard to imagine Apple selling a device that can’t take the latest OS.
Coming Sooner or Later
Beta number one of watchOS 9 is out to developers now. It’ll be out to Apple’s public testing program next month. Like the rest of Apple’s operating systems, the consumer release is expected this fall.